20190309_153637 Stress Inversion Transformer on a street corner at SXSW 2019By its own account, "This machine converts excess irritation and surplus angst into useful clean energy." Energy from screaming and stomping is translated into useable electricity. I didn't see anyone try it, though.
Date: 03/09/2019
As far as I can tell, the number of interesting things one can see and experience for free on the streets of Austin downtown during SXSW has been steadily decreasing over the years. I'm talking about things like quasi-technological art installations and creative promotional gimmicks by various brands. This year the pickings were slim. We came across this Stress Inversion Transformer. By its own account, "This machine converts excess irritation and surplus angst into useful clean energy. Stress discharge in the form of screaming and stomping is captured by custom-designed piezoelectric transducers which translate sound pressure and kinetic energy into useable electricity."

So it seems like you could scream and stomp in this machine to release stress, but I didn't see a single person do it. Instead they stood around at a safe distance. Maybe a stack of release forms - including the right for machine's owners to take pictures of you - caused more stress than it promised to relieve.

March 2019

20190309_154023 Crusaders against dairyThese representatives of Vicecreme stood on a street corner during SXSW in Guy Fawkes masks, holding TV screens showing cows and calves mistreated by dairy industry. Others engaged passers-by in hostile conversations, shaming them for consuming dairy.
Date: 03/09/2019
I saw these people standing on a street corner during SXSW, crusading against dairy. Judging by one guy's t-shirt, they were representatives for Vicecreme. They wore Guy Fawkes masks and stood in the middle of the sidewalk, holding TV screens running a movie of cows and calves being mistreated by dairy industry. Meanwhile, a few other "foot soldiers" tried to engage passers-by in hostile conversations, aggressively shaming them for consuming dairy. Great way to promote a brand.

20190309_155904 Pink lounge in a truckThis company, Klaxoon, had a lounge in downtown Austin in an 18-wheeler truck, dressed in pink for the occasion. Inside they held a permanently running demo for their company's product. Click the image to read more.
Date: 03/09/2019
Even with opportunities for non-SXSW badge holders to be feted by corporations and brands during SXSW shrinking, some brands still admit the hoi polloi to their promotional events. This company, Klaxoon, had a lounge in downtown Austin in an 18-wheeler truck, dressed in pink for the occasion. The truck was even air-conditioned. They treated everyone who stopped by to free champagne, beer, cheese and fruit. Inside they held a permanently running demo for their company's product. From what I could tell, it lets you forward your questions to the presenter electronically, instead of shouting them out loud. If there was more to it, I couldn't tell.

20190228_181540 R in a farmer's "costume"R dressed as a farmer to perform in his second grade musical. He only had a non-speaking role, which was to sing in the choir along with all the kids. The "farmers" were supposed to wear a plaid shirt, jeans, and a straw hat.
Date: 02/28/2019
R dressed as a farmer to perform in his second grade musical. He only had a non-speaking role, which is to say he sang in the choir along with all the kids (though from what I could see from the back row, he barely opened his mouth). About a quarter of the class were supposed to dress up as farmers, which included a plaid shirt, jeans, and a straw hat.

The musical's theme were Aesop's tales, and it consisted of six parts, each of them representing one tale. The choir numbers were interspersed with parts where one kid after another would come up to a microphone and recite a couple of lines of a verse.

February 2019

20190302_175745 E as a dog in an Annie musicalE (crouching on the floor) plays the dog Sandy in her middle school performance of the musical "Annie". Next to her is the red-headed orphan Annie, the protagonist of the musical. She had only one speaking (rather, singing) line in the whole mus
Date: 03/02/2019
E (crouching on the floor) plays the dog Sandy in her middle school performance of the musical "Annie". She is shown here with the red-headed orphan Annie, the protagonist of the musical. They sing a duet "Tomorrow", if you can call it a duet when the song is performed almost entirely by Annie. The dog Sandy has only one speaking (or rather, singing) line in this song and in the whole musical. Well, two, if you count the howling "line" at the end.

E's part was small, but she played it well.

March 2019

20190302_184740 Annie curtain call with E as dog SandyE (in the wagon) played the dog Sandy in her middle school performance of the musical "Annie". Her part consisted of only one speaking (or rather singing line): "tomorrow", in the duet with Annie. Two lines, if you count the howl at th
Date: 03/02/2019
E (in the wagon) played the dog Sandy in her middle school performance of the musical "Annie". Her part consisted of only one speaking (or rather singing line): "tomorrow", in the duet with Annie. Two lines, if you count the howl at the end.

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